2024 Draft Budget tool

Every year, the City of Ottawa produces a municipal budget. One of the City’s most important documents, the budget is the blueprint that defines how money is received (revenue) and spent (expenses). There are two building blocks to the draft budget:  

• The operating budget funds City programs and services that residents rely on every day.  
• The capital budget pays for the rehabilitation of current infrastructure and assets under the City’s control or to invest in growth of our City.  

The draft budget tool provides an interactive overview of some of the key components found in the draft budget. If at any point in time the figures found in this tool differ from the draft budget books or presentations at Committee, the draft budget books will be considered the accurate data.  

The draft budget is broken down by Committee, department and service areas as described in the Table of City Services and Standing Committee reporting structure. With direction from Council, the budget is drafted and tabled for review by each Standing Committee and adopted by Council. Aside from the draft budget considered by Committees, there are four external boards who debate their budget separately. These budgets are represented in the overviews but are not broken down by committee or included in the rates, fees and charges reports. For more information on these budgets please visit the agenda for the budget tabling meeting. 

• Committee of Adjustment 
• Ottawa Police Services 
• Ottawa Public Health 
• Ottawa Public Library 

For complete details on the budget visit the Budget, finance and corporate planning page. For all the original data sets used in this tool or previous budget actuals please visit Open Ottawa.

If you are interested in learning more about municipal assessments and how Ottawa compares to other Ontario municipalities pleas take a look at 2022 Municipal Study conducted by BMA Management Consulting Inc.

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All City programs and services are funded through the City’s operating budget, which supports the dependable delivery of services that residents rely on every day. Your municipal government is responsible for emergency services, roads, clean water, parks and recreation, public health programs, garbage and recycling programs, libraries, public transportation and so much more. 

What is included in operating expenses? 

• Employee compensation 
• Salary and wages 
• Overtime 
• Benefits and allowances 
• Gross expenditures 
• Materials and services 
• Transfers/grants/Financial charges 
• Fleet costs 
• Program facility costs 
• Other internal costs 
• Recoveries and allocations 

Regulated by the Ontario Municipal Act, the City cannot run a deficit on operating expenditures. The City must maintain a balanced operating budget. This means that the money spent must equal the money being collected or received. 

In aligning with the budget books, all numbers in this section are noted in thousands ($000). Please add three zeros to the end of the budget figure for the total.

For more information on the operating budget visit the Budget, finance and corporate planning page. 

City infrastructure and assets are funded through the capital budget. Most of that funding goes to maintaining and fixing existing infrastructure as described in the Comprehensive Asset Management analysis. As funding allows, the City continues to fund growth, build new infrastructure and invest in the future. 

The capital budget considers the different needs of planning, finance, engineering, maintenance and operations to effectively manage existing and new infrastructure. The goal of the infrastructure management approach is to maximize benefits, reduce risk and provide safe and reliable levels of service to community users in a socially, culturally, environmentally and economically conscious manner.  

Many projects are planned and paid for over multiple years. They may also benefit multiple wards or the entire City. The funds listed in this section are only what is to be paid in this budget year. For a full listing of capital Works in Progress please see the budget books. 

In aligning with the budget books, all numbers in this section are noted in thousands ($000). Please add three zeros to the end of the budget figure for the total.

For more information on the capital budget visit the Budget, finance and corporate planning page. 

The draft budget is broken down by Committee, department and service area as described in the Table of City Services and Standing Committee reporting structure. Each Committee is responsible for a specific portion of the operating and capital budget. The Committee hears from community delegations and debates the budget items assigned to them. Councillors can ask for amendments to each section of the budget and then all sections of the budget are brought back to Council for a final vote on adoption. 

This report provides a detailed overview of what is included in each operating and capital budget being discussed at each Standing Committee. 

Full details on each project are found in the full budget books presented to Council. 

In aligning with the budget books, all numbers in this section are noted in thousands ($000). Please add three zeros to the end of the budget figure for the total.

For more information on the budget visit the Budget, finance and corporate planning page. 

Rates are utility charges dependant on usage for water consumption and sewer surcharges that are found on residents' water bills. 

Fees are charged to users of many City services to cover part or all of the costs of providing the service. Examples of where fees are applied include transit fares, recreation program fees, planning applications and childcare fees.  

Development charges are one-time fees levied by municipalities on new residential and non-residential properties to help pay for a portion of the growth-related capital infrastructure requirements. Development charges are determined and accounted for by type of service component. 

Rates, fees and charges reflected in this table are from the draft budget. These charges may change throughout the year at Council’s discretion. If there is a discrepancy between this tool and a web page, application, bill or notice, the formal documents will be considered the most accurate. 

For more information on rates, fees, and charges visit the Budget, finance and corporate planning page. 

Reserve funds are monies set aside to fund capital expenditures, similar to having a personal savings account for future needs. They are also used to manage unexpected expenses and to support the City’s finances for the long-term. 

Each reserve fund is made up of several discretionary reserves. The use of each discretionary reserve is restricted to the specific purpose for which they were created and cannot be used for any other purpose, unless otherwise approved by Council and subject to any other relevant legislation.  

The opening balance of the 2024 reserve represents how much is expected to be in the account at the start of the year. The closing balance for 2023 and 2024 estimates how much is expected to be in the account at the end of the year. Reserve balances from previous years are based on the actual balance for each year. Each reserve may have a difference in the closing balance from the previous year and the opening balance due to commitments from the prior year that changed the balance. 

In aligning with the budget books, all numbers in this section are noted in thousands ($000). Please add three zeros to the end of the budget figure for the total.

For more information on reserve funds visit the Budget, finance and corporate planning page.